Monday Muppet Moment: Evelyn Glennie in the "Grouchketeer" Band

Percussionist Evelyn Glennie is an amazing musician. Though she doesn't like to dwell upon it, her abilities are even more amazing when you factor in that she is profoundly deaf. As an aspiring young musician, Glennie studied piano and clarinet in Scotland when, at the age of eight, she began to lose her hearing.  Over the course of the next four years, as her hearing continued to deteriorate, she refused to let go of her desire to be a musician. Since then, she has learned to be sensitive to the other ways we all hear, whether we know it or not, through vibrations.  After all, Glennie says, sound is nothing more than vibrations which most of us pick up through our ears, but also sense in other ways.  That is why you will see her remove her shoes before performances, so she can feel and better sense the various frequencies of the vibrations created by the sound of the other instruments being played. In 2007, the TED Conferences offered her a unique opportunity to speak to people around the world about How to Truly Listen. In today's Muppet Moment (seen above), Evelyn Glennie demonstrates her remarkable talents for a typically skeptical Oscar the Grouch. Below, you'll find a return appearance. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SyYXMKtGwGQ